<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Be my husband by candelina</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23855491">Be my husband</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/candelina/pseuds/candelina'>candelina</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman &amp; Terry Pratchett</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>5+1 Things, Established Relationship, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Ineffable Idiots (Good Omens), Kissing, Light Angst, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Multi, Post-Apocalypse, Pre-Apocalypse, What-If</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 21:41:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,887</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23855491</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/candelina/pseuds/candelina</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>5 times Aziraphale tried to propose to Crowley and 1 time he did it (and he got an unexpected reaction).</p><p>~~~</p><p>Aziraphale’s plan was to do it in 2041. He and Crowley had been together since 1941, when the angel finally realised two very important things: the demon loved him and his feelings were mutual.<br/>A 100th anniversary was indeed a very special occasion and what better moment to ask the love of your life to marry you? It was a perfect plan.<br/>Unfortunately, a much bigger Plan had to ruin it all.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>65</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Be my husband</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">


        <li>
            A translation of

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23802622">Le proposte di matrimonio</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/candelina/pseuds/candelina">candelina</a>.
        </li>

    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I had this idea and I just had to write it.</p><p>This is an English translation I made after posting the Italian version, but there's one slightly extended scene at the beginning. (warning for implied/references to sex)</p><p>I hope you'll like it ;)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>Aziraphale had always thought of marriage as a contract. A relationship based on the promise, written and signed, of mutual benefits and accompanied by specific rituals. A contract.<p>The religious aspect was just a bonus. As was the romantic one. Aziraphale had been living long enough to have seen a lot of marriages that weren’t based on love, but they had other advantages. He could see why humans would come up with peculiar ways to maintain a bond with someone, even though Heaven didn’t have anything similar.<br/>
Marriage was such a human concept. But also were food, drinks, sleep, sex and Aziraphale enjoyed all of them.</p><p>The idea came to him during the late 1980s, after he and Crowley attended a parade which was meant to protest against a law that discriminated same-sex couples and homosexuality in general.  The demon had claimed that he wanted to take credit for influencing the people to cause trouble or something like that, while Aziraphale had been drawn by the powerful flashes of love emanating from the crowd.<br/>
All those people fighting to be free to be themselves and to be with who they wanted. It was something that struck him deeply.</p><p>Wouldn’t it be nice to call Crowley <em>his husband</em>? Wouldn’t it be absolutely wonderful to be <em>Crowley’s husband</em>? Only thinking about it brought a silly smile on the angel’s face and made him feel his cheeks warmer. </p><p>There was no rush, though. He and Crowley had been together only since 1941, despite having known each other (and probably having been in love) for millennia.<br/>
Meanwhile, nothing prevented Aziraphale from planning the whole thing.<br/>
The year 2041 sounded like the most suitable option. A 100th anniversary was indeed a very special occasion and what better moment to ask the love of your life to marry you?</p><p>They didn’t need to go fast. After all, they had all the time they wanted. </p><p> </p><p>It didn’t occur to him how incredibly wrong he was until one evening his dinner – at one of his favourite Japanese restaurants – was ruined by the sudden appearance of the Archangel Gabriel, who brought him news that was anything but good, at least from Aziraphale’s perspective. </p><p><em>The</em> child had been delivered. Armageddon had started.</p><p>After he finished to eat his sushi, which strangely tasted a little bit less delicious than the usual, the angel decided to walk back to the bookshop and found himself deep in thought. He almost bumped into someone on the street and had to apologise for being so foolishly distracted.</p><p>That’s when he noticed that little lovely shop, which was still opened even at that late hour. He walked closer to it, as if drawn by an invisible force. He looked at all the jewellery in the shop window, until something caught his eye. He quickly went inside the shop.</p><p>“Good evening.”</p><p>“Good evening, sir.” The young cashier welcomed him with a tired, but also genuine smile. “How may I help you?”</p><p>“I would like to see some of your most beautiful wedding rings, please.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>They met at St. James’s Park to figure out what to do, but the only decision they made in the end was to have lunch at the Ritz, where they had spent many lovely dates over the past few decades. After going back to the bookshop, they drank quite extraordinary amounts of alcohol for about six hours.<p>The predictable result was a drunken conversation, which didn’t make a lot of sense and continued until the two immortal beings wisely decided to sober up. After that, the conversation reached an interesting point – which wasn’t about dolphins. Aziraphale couldn’t go against the Divine Plan, but that didn’t prevent him from following another plan at the same time, if it was about thwarting evil wiles. It was his job, after all.<br/>
So, the new plan Crowley came up with involved an equal influence of the forces of Good and Evil on the Antichrist, in a perfect balance.</p><p>“Godfathers.” Aziraphale grinned, delighted with how the idea sounded. He and Crowley had had many experiences (which was an euphemism) over the centuries, but looking after a child together and directly contributing to his upbringing so that he wouldn’t destroy the world? That was new.</p><p>“Cheers to our new plan.” Crowley said, raising his glass – which had been filled <em>again</em>. He drank without waiting for the angel and then stood up from where he was sitting on the armchair, which Aziraphale let only him use, sometimes.</p><p>“I thought we said no more wine for tonight.”</p><p>“It’s just one glass, angel.” The demon crossed the space between him and Aziraphale with two long steps, swinging his hips, and sat down next to him on the sofa. Very close to him. “Besides, I’ve done my job for today and I deserve a reward.” He looked at the angel with a fond smirk on his face as he placed a hand on his knee. “And, didn’t you say Upstairs want you to, what was the expression… ah, yes, to keep me under observation?”</p><p>“Crowley, dear, are you drunk again?”</p><p>“I don’t have to be drunk to want to do this.” </p><p>Before Aziraphale could get a chance to say something else, Crowley’s lips were on his, kissing him with slow but passionate intensity. Soon after, the demon tilted his head to deepen the kiss and his tongue licked the angel’s lower lip, as if asking for permission. But the angel withdrew slightly.</p><p>“Mmn– Crowley… I don’t mind this at all, you know, but… are you sure you’re alright?” Aziraphale asked softly as he cupped the demon’s face with both hands.</p><p>Crowley closed his eyes and sighed. “Yes. I just– we’ve always known this moment would come, but it was like… too sudden and– and– ngh.” A low hiss escaped from his mouth before he could suppress it. Then, he admitted, “I just don’t want to think about it right now.”</p><p>“Of course, my dear.” The angel understood how he felt. There was no one that could understand either of them better than the other. And because he knew Crowley better than anybody else, he knew how to recognise when he needed a nice distraction – and if he was honest with himself, he needed it, too.<br/>
He smiled indulgently and gave the demon a soft peck on the nose before moving to his lips.</p><p>Crowley’s response didn’t come late, as he soon kissed back and began to shift on the sofa. With one swift movement, he placed a knee next to each of Aziraphale’s sides, straddling him without breaking the contact between their mouths. The angel moaned as the demon pressed his whole body against his and he could already feel something harden inside his trousers. Then, Aziraphale started to run his strong hands on his thighs and Crowley made a pleased sound, sighing into the kiss.</p><p>“Aziraphale, please, don’t stop…”</p><p>“Do you like this?”</p><p>“Yes. Yes, please, keep touching me… touch me more.” The demon whispered as he began to kiss his way down and across the angel’s neck, but too soon he encountered a problem – which wasn’t a new one at all. He grumbled, irritated, against the collar of Aziraphale’s shirt. “You’re always wearing too many clothes.”</p><p>“And you’re always wearing such tight jeans.” The angel replied and, as if wanting to demonstrate his point, he grabbed the demon’s ass and squeezed it.</p><p>Crowley gasped, loudly. And <em>oh</em> how much Aziraphale loved to hear those sounds.</p><p>“I’m not even sure why you invented them.” Aziraphale took the advantage and started kissing his jaw and neck, which was much more exposed. “They don’t seem very comfortable.”</p><p>“That’s– ah… that’s kinda the point.” Crowley rolled his hips, rubbing against the hard bulge under him. His body was screaming at him, but Aziraphale didn’t even flinch.</p><p>He simply continued to massage the demon’s butt. Then, he asked in a smooth voice, “What are you in the mood for now, my dear?” </p><p>“Take a guess?” Crowley said through gritted teeth, growing more impatient.</p><p>Aziraphale chuckled. “I’d like you to say it.”</p><p>“Fine.” The demon finally gave up and tilted his head to whisper into the angel’s ear. “I’m in the mood for a ride.”</p><p>“That can be arranged.”</p><p>The angel grinned against Crowley’s beautiful skin and snapped his fingers. Less than a second later, they both found themselves as naked as Adam and Eve when they were first created. Aziraphale’s breath was caught in his throat when he looked up to meet his demon’s gaze.</p><p>“You’re such a stunning view, my darling.”</p><p> </p><p>An indefinite amount of time later, Aziraphale was lying down on his back with Crowley’s head on his chest as they were both trying to catch their breath.</p><p>When he found the strength, the angel miracled them both clean and then began to stroke Crowley’s hair gently, knowing that he enjoyed it. It had become one of their first post-sex habits, but they had more.<br/>
After a little while, he asked in a tender whisper, “would you like to move to bed, dear?”</p><p>A low mumble came from the figure sprawled on the top of him.</p><p>“I’m afraid I’m not quite sure I understood that.”</p><p>“I said nah. ’S fine here.”</p><p>“As you wish then.” It was in moments like this that Aziraphale managed to forget everything about Above or Below, about who they were or what they were supposed to do. He looked up at the ceiling and sighed happily, enjoying that feeling as much as he could, enjoying how wonderful being with Crowley was and would always be. But, how long ‘always’ was going to be for them? He didn’t know.</p><p>“Crowley…”</p><p>There wasn’t time to waste. He couldn’t allow himself to go too slow.</p><p>“My dear, I’d like to ask you a very important question.” He made a brief pause to take a deep breath. “I’ve been thinking lately… well, I’m sure you’ve heard about the thing human called ‘marriage’ and I, uh, I-I just wanted to know… do you think you’d be interested in it?”</p><p>He waited for a moment. Then two. Three. Four. However, this time, all he received as a reply was a soft snore from an already sleeping demon.</p><p>Aziraphale sighed softly and smiled, holding him close. Then, he closed his eyes, too – but not before making a warm blanket appear to cover them both. </p><p>
  <em>Maybe next time</em>
</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>It was a nice, sunny day at the Official London Residence where the Dowling family was living. Warlock had come up with a splendid idea that morning when he saw the blue cloudless sky and had immediately gone to tell his nanny.<br/>They organized a picnic in the huge garden that surrounded his house and they had also invited Brother Francis to take part in it. The three of them had set a blanket on the grass and were currently sitting on it all together.<p>“Let’s see what we have here… oh, who made these sandwiches?”</p><p>“Nanny helped me making them!” The child answered proudly. “Try it, Brother Francis!”</p><p>“You don’t need to tell me twice.” The gardener gave him a toothy smile and immediately grabbed one of the sandwiches from the picnic basket. “Mmm! They’re scrumptious.”</p><p>“Nanny said you’d like them.”</p><p>“And she was right, of course.” Brother Francis turned to the nanny, who was trying her best to look disinterested and even annoyed by the whole scene – she wasn’t succeeding very well.</p><p>Warlock grabbed a sandwich, too, and took a bite when, suddenly, he seemed to remember something. “Did you bring the flowers, Brother Francis?”</p><p>Ms. Ashtoreth frowned slightly. “Don’t talk with your mouth full, dear.” </p><p>“Sorry, nanny.” The child said and ate the rest of his sandwich quietly, furrowing his brow. When he finished, he looked into the basket. “Oh, no! We forgot the mayo!” He exclaimed, disappointed, and quickly stood up. “Can I go to take it, nanny? Please?”</p><p>The nanny looked at him and sighed. It couldn’t be helped. That kid was a little devil (she really wished this could be just an euphemism) when it came to certain things. “Alright. Go to the kitchen and ask Mrs. Fernsby, she knows where it is.” </p><p>“Yes, nanny!” Warlock nodded and turned around, rushing through the garden.</p><p>Brother Francis watched him go and then gazed at the red-haired woman with a fond expression on his face. “You do really care about him, don’t you?”</p><p>Ms. Ashtoreth snorted. “Don’t be ridiculous, angel. It’s not like we can have him choke while he eats or hurt if– HEY! BE CAREFUL! DON’T RUN SO FAST!” </p><p>She yelled at young Warlock, who laughed a little but eventually slowed down before reaching the door of the house.</p><p>Next to her, the gardener gave a soft chuckle. </p><p>“Ssshut up.” She grumbled.</p><p>“You know, my dear,” Brother Francis began and gently took her hand in his, “it’s been a while since I last saw you in your female form and I must say… I have almost forgotten how beautiful and enchanting you can be.”</p><p>Ms Ashtoreth glanced at him, but quickly looked away when she felt the flush spreading over her face. “I thought I told you to stop being ridiculous.”</p><p>“I’m not being ridiculous.” The gardener smiled and kissed the back of her hand. “Just sincere.”</p><p>She felt something warm in her chest, and it wasn’t an unfamiliar sensation – especially when the angel did things like that out of nowhere. “What about the flowers?”</p><p>“Sorry?”</p><p>“The kid asked you about some flowers.”</p><p>“Oh, huh… I…” Brother Francis stuttered a bit. “You see, I was teaching Warlock about kind acts of love and, accidentally, I mentioned that I wanted to grow some roses for you and he told me to bring them to the picnic today, but, well… let’s just say I don’t have green fingers like you, dear.”</p><p>The nanny didn’t comment on the last statement, but she didn’t look at him either. She was still waiting for the blush on her cheeks to fade. “Why the roses?”</p><p>“Well, my idea was to grow red roses. I know you like the colour red and… you understand what the meaning of those flowers is.”</p><p>“Oh.” She turned to him then. And she leant closer to give him a sweet peck on the cheek, leaving a light trace of her lipstick there. “Thank you.”</p><p>It was the gardener’s turn to blush now and the nanny looked a bit too smug with herself for it. “By the way, your disguise isn’t so bad either.”</p><p>“Why, thank you, dear.” Brother Francis tried to compose himself. He had no way of knowing whether all the work they were doing would be truly useful for their purpose, which meant that he couldn’t take all the time he wanted, because he couldn’t be sure about how much time they were going to have.<br/>
He cleared his throat and finally spoke again. “My darling, I must confess that I… I wanted to bring you… not only roses, but also something else.”</p><p>Ms Ashtoreth raised a brow at him, but waited patiently for him to continue.</p><p>He reached for something in his pocket. “And, well, you know I failed miserably with the flowers, but perhaps there’s still one thing that I can get right and… and that’s why I’d like to ask you–”</p><p> </p><p>“NANNY!” </p><p>Both the gardener and the nanny were startled by the sudden loud voice that called to attract the woman’s attention.</p><p>Warlock had come out of the house and was now running towards them while waving excitedly and holding the mayonnaise. “LOOK! I GOT IT!”</p><p>“Yes, I can see it, dear! But, please, stop running like that!”</p><p>Brother Francis sighed and pulled his hand away from the pocket, leaving there the small, black box he had been keeping. “He’s very energetic, isn’t he?” he let out a soft giggle as he watched the child reducing his speed until he was walking.<br/>
“You know, I’m glad we decided to do this, even though I’d prefer to have to do it under different circumstances.”</p><p>“You mean the ‘godfathers’ thing? Uh… yeah.”</p><p>“I hope it’ll work. I just… just hope he’ll grow up as a normal human being.”</p><p>Ms Ashtoreth put her hand over the gardener’s and gave him a small smile.</p><p>“Don’t worry, angel.” She said, “I’m sure everything will go as planned.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>The Apocalypse was only three days away and nothing had gone as planned.<p>The birthday party had been a disaster – not for the birthday boy, who had looked like he had a lot of fun in the end – but the worst thing was that no hellhound, no dog at all, had showed up. Yet, through the Bentley’s radio, Hell confirmed they had sent it. The conclusion, for how terrible the implications of it, could be only one.</p><p>Warlock, the child Aziraphale and Crowley had spent years to influence in favour of a balance between Good and Evil, was the <em>wrong boy</em>.<br/>
The real Antichrist was God knows where (and She certainly wasn’t going to tell them) and ready to start the End Times.</p><p>“What do we do, now?” Crowley asked as he miracled his headache away after drinking his– he had lost count of how many glasses of scotch he had already had.</p><p>“Well, first of all, you should sober up and have a rest.” Aziraphale approached the demon and helped him stand up from the chair where he was sitting. “You won’t be of any help in these conditions. Why don’t you use my bed upstairs?”</p><p>“Hmm… nah, no need. I’ll just lie down for a bit.”</p><p>“All right, dear.” The angel guided him to the sofa in the back room. He took off Crowley’s sunglasses and put them on the coffee table, while the demon sprawled on the sofa.</p><p>“I take it you won’t join me, angel?”</p><p>Aziraphale grabbed a blanket that he had previously put aside and he handed it over to him. “I’m afraid no, my dear. I’d like to do some research and see if I can come up with any useful idea.”</p><p>Crowley took the blanket. “Right. So, I’ll just take a quick nap, then. Wake me if you find anything.” </p><p>The angel nodded and then went to the main room to turn over the closed sign on the shop door. After that, he headed quietly to one of his bookshelves to begin his research. He didn’t know exactly what he was looking for, but he had to start from somewhere, even without any clues. Plus, he wasn’t really in the mood to sleep.</p><p>A moment later, he heard a noise coming from the back room. The demon had fallen asleep almost as soon as he closed his eyes and was snoring softly, all wrapped up in the blanket.<br/>
Aziraphale brought a hand to his chest as he felt his heart filled with warm fondness. He walked up to the sofa, watching him closely, and then bent down to plant a sweet kiss on Crowley’s forehead.</p><p>“May you have a dream about whatever you like best.”</p><p>Soon after he whispered those words, a smile appeared on the demon’s face. “Angel…”</p><p>Once Aziraphale had settled in his comfortable armchair, he opened the first book he had taken from his bookshelves, but found it difficult to concentrate. He kept stealing glances at the sleeping red-headed demon on his sofa. He looked so at peace and all the angel could think of was that he wished he could wake up every morning with such a beautiful sight beside him.</p><p>Aziraphale didn’t feel sleepy, but that didn’t prevent him from spending most of the night daydreaming about his and Crowley’s life as a happily married couple. In the end, his research led to very little more than nothing.</p><p> </p><p>Eventually, morning came and the angel reluctantly had to go and open the shop, but not before making himself a pancake or two for breakfast. He also prepared some caffe latte for his beloved demon like the good <strike>husband</strike> partner he was. Now, what he had to do was to wake him up.</p><p>He put the cup of coffee on the table next to the sofa and ran a gentle hand through his light auburn hair while whispering softly, “Good morning, my love.”</p><p>He waited for a moment. Then, since he got no response, he tried again.</p><p>“I know you like to sleep, but I think now it’s time to wake up, yes?”</p><p>Crowley grumbled something, then he blinked slowly and started to adjust his eyes to the surroundings. Looking up, he finally noticed Aziraphale, who was giving him an apologetic smile.</p><p>“What the… what time is it?”</p><p>“Quite late in the morning, dear. I’ve opened the bookshop and there are already customers coming in.”</p><p>“Well, that happens sometimes, you know, when you run a shop.”</p><p>“I see from your clever remarks that you’re fully awake now.”</p><p>Crowley snorted and pushed himself in a sitting position. He rubbed his eyes a little before looking around to search for his sunglasses. He found them on the coffee table and put them on. He also noticed the cup of caffe latte waiting for him there and couldn’t suppress a fond smile as he took it.</p><p>“I hope you slept well.”</p><p>“Ah– uhm, yes.” He said, remembering the nice dream he had had. “Yeah, I did.”</p><p>“That’s good to hear.” The angel watched him standing up, while absent-mindedly moving his hand to one of the pockets of his coat.<br/>
He almost winced, as if taken aback by what he found there. But, there was really nothing to be surprised for, if not the fact that he had yet to find the courage to do that one thing he had been wanting to do for eleven years now. It shouldn’t even be so hard, if you thought about it. All he had to do was asking a question.</p><p>Aziraphale patted his pocket a bit awkwardly and then cleared his throat to get Crowley’s attention. “Ahem… Crowley, dear, before you leave…”</p><p>The demon looked at him. “Yes, angel?” </p><p>“Uh…” </p><p>He could do it. It was just a question. One simple question.</p><p>“I…” <em>Come on, just say it</em>. “I-I know this may seem a bit sudden, but… well, I’ve meaning to ask you for a while actually and… you see, I guess what I’m trying to say is th–”</p><p>Aziraphale stopped suddenly in mid-sentence and his eyes widened.</p><p>“What is it, angel? Are you– oh, shit.” The demon sniffed the air and immediately knew what the angel had felt. A holy presence. Two, to be precise. And they were getting closer. “I… I think I should go.”</p><p><em>No!</em> “Ah. Right.” The angel said, as he fidgeted with his fingers.</p><p>Crowley moved closer until he was in front of him and they exchanged a soft kiss on the lips. “Call me later.”</p><p>Aziraphale tried to compose himself and nodded. “Yes. Jolly good.”</p><p>The demon turned around and used the back door to leave. Aziraphale sighed and <em>almost</em> cursed himself for having wasted another opportunity. It took him a lot of holy willpower to stay calm, as he went to the other room, where he found two archangels looking around his shop and waiting for him.<br/>
His heartbeat increased, but managed to ignored it and put on a friendly smile to welcome them.</p><p>“Can I help you?”</p><p>The two archangels turned to him. “I’d like to purchase one of your material objects.”</p><p>“Books.”</p><p>“Books.” Gabriel grinned, proud of his impersonation of the human behaviour. You could almost say that he had fun doing those kind of scenes. “Let us discuss my purchase in a private place, because I’m buying… uh…”</p><p>“Pornography?” Sandalphon helped him.</p><p>“Pornography!” If possible, the archangel’s grin became even wider.</p><p>“Gabriel, come into my back room.” Aziraphale, terribly embarrassed but unwilling to show it, gestured towards the other room, where they could discuss the ‘private purchase’, which obviously had nothing to do with pornography.</p><p>Once the three of them were alone, Gabriel put down the book he had casually chosen and exclaimed, “Human beings are so simple and so easily fooled!”</p><p>“Yes!” Aziraphale let out a nervous chuckle, while wishing that this could be over as soon as possible. “Good job, you fooled them all.”</p><p>“You remember Sandalphon?” Gabriel gestured towards the shorter archangel.</p><p>Aziraphale had to turn around to look at him. “Sodom and Gomorrah. You were doing a lot of smiting and turning people into salt. Hard to forget.” As if he could ever forget. About that, or everything Heaven had the power to do.<br/>
He was about to address Gabriel again to ask him what they came there for–</p><p>But then, Sandalphon sniffed the air. “Something smells… evil.”</p><p>For a few moments, Aziraphale forgot how to breathe – even though he had been doing it for six thousand years. Then, he remembered his emergency plan for this kind of situations. “Oh, that’ll be the Jeffrey Archer books, I’m afraid.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>Aziraphale had never allowed himself to swear – at anyone or anything. There had been a few occasions in which he had been on the verge of doing it, but he had always managed to control himself. It had been six thousand years and he was rather proud of this. Besides the fact that it was very rude, most of the time it wasn’t even worth it – that’s what he used to think – which is also the reason why he scolded Crowley whenever he used any kind of vulgar language.<p>So, when he did it for the first time, it felt <em>really</em> liberating.</p><p>And, honestly, he had all the excuses to do it, because it wasn’t even his fault. It all started with the meaningless issue of Armageddon, which had arisen without warning and had forced him to change his original plans to propose to his boyfriend. Not only he had been forced to go faster and to accelerate the whole process – which is why he ended up making a mess of things – but the supposed ‘Divine Plan’ had put him in a very difficult position. Not to mention the fact that his loyalty to Heaven had made him quarrel and almost break up with the love of his life.</p><p>Right. <em>Heaven</em>. White, cold, empty place always so wrapped up in its ‘perfection’. Now, looking at those young angels all lined up and getting ready to fight like soldiers in a war that would bring nothing but destruction, he saw himself, in a way. He recalled the early days when he still had blind faith in everything Heaven said or did and he used to follow their orders without question. But things had changed. He had met Crowley.</p><p>Coming back in that place hadn’t been his choice, but it had provided him with the opportunity to open his eyes and finally make his choice.<br/>
He’d have to remember to thank Sergeant Shadwell later. Now, though, he was tired of being yelled at. He had no intention of fighting in any war.</p><p>Aziraphale made sure to send a very clear message when he approached the floating globe in the middle of the room. He hadn’t a precise idea of how to navigate with it, but he guessed he could figure it out as he went.</p><p>It was probably the biggest and most unexpected <em>Fuck You</em> that Heaven had ever gotten.</p><p> </p><p>Finding Crowley was easier than what he had predicted. All he had to do was following those familiar flashes of love that he had been feeling since a bomb had literally exploded over his head.</p><p>When Aziraphale appeared in that pub, he found himself right in front of a certain red-haired demon who had his head bowed, a hand wrapped around a bottle of wine and who looked like he had been drowning his sorrows in the alcohol for a while. That sight made him feel a sharp pain in his chest, as if he still had his material body, as if his heart had started to bleed.</p><p>“Crowley…”</p><p>The demon jerked his head up as soon as he heard his voice. </p><p>“Aziraphale…?” He looked like he was seeing a ghost. The ghost of his angel. “Are… are you here?”</p><p>“Good question. Uh… I’m not sure. I’ve never done this before.” The angel realised he wasn’t used to not having a body. He had had one for six thousand years, after all. “But I’m so glad I found you. For a moment, I was afraid you’d gone to Alpha Centauri.”</p><p>“As if I could go without you.” Crowley snapped, as if he was saying a bad thing.</p><p>Aziraphale stared at him. A few locks of his light reddish-brown hair, which was usually well styled, were falling on his forehead and there were wrinkles around his sharp cheekbones. His skin was also paler than the usual. Crowley looked like a mess. But he was still a beautiful mess. Aziraphale wanted to hug him, hold him tight, kiss him and never let go of him. But, he couldn’t. Not yet.</p><p>“I owe you an apology, my dear.” He managed to say, eventually. “And I promise we will talk about it later, but now we really need to focus or… or there won’t be a ‘later’.”</p><p>Crowley hesitated only a moment, then nodded. “What do we do?”</p><p>The angel smiled at that. “Well, first of all, back at my bookshop there’s a book I need you to get.” As soon as he finished to speak, he noticed the demon’s eyes widen behind his sunglasses as he froze on the spot.</p><p>“Your… your bookshop isn’t there anymore.”</p><p>If Aziraphale still had a stomach, he would’ve felt it drop. “Oh.”</p><p>“I’m so sorry, it burned down.” The demon explained softly, with a pained expression on his face, as if giving that news was physically hurting him.</p><p>All the confidence the angel had been feeling vanished in an instant. “All of it?” </p><p>“Mh– ngh–… yeah. What… what was the book?”</p><p>Aziraphale closed his eyes and tried to breathe, even though he didn’t need it, but he had the illusion that it helped. “The one the young lady with the bicycle left behind. <em>The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of</em>…”</p><p>“<em>Agnes Nutter</em>! Yes, I took it!” Crowley exclaimed, as he frantically reached for something.</p><p>The angel perked up at that, suddenly a warm sensation grew within him. Hope. “You… you have it?”</p><p>“Look! Souvenir!”</p><p>It was really that book, the one Crowley was proudly showing him. Aziraphale almost couldn’t believe his own eyes. “Oh, look inside, I made notes!” He instructed him quickly and admitted, “the boy’s name, address, everything. I figured it all out.” As he watched the demon going through the pages and the notes he had written, his hopeful feeling turned into something much more bitter. Guilt. In that moment, a little voice inside Aziraphale’s mind yelled at him for all his mistakes. If only he had talked to Crowley sooner, if only he had listened to him, if only he hadn’t been such a coward. They were a couple, for– someone’s sake. Maybe they didn’t stand out for their communication skills all the time, maybe they had their fights and misunderstandings, but if there was something Aziraphale had figured out by going back to Heaven against his own will that was where he truly belonged. And that would be here, on Earth, with Crowley. He was going to do everything in his power to prevent this place from being destroyed.<br/>
Where else were they supposed to have their wedding?</p><p>“We need to go to that Airbase in Tadfield. I just have to find a receptive body.” The latter might be a bit of a problem, but he was pretty sure he could manage to sort it out, one way or another. “Pity I can’t inhabit yours. Not this time at least.”</p><p>“Angel!” Crowley exclaimed, as even his ears turned to a deeper shade of pink.</p><p>Aziraphale chuckled. He had to admit to himself that he really enjoyed making the demon blush. He had done it also because he wanted to lighten the mood a bit, but now Crowley was giving him the ‘<em>really? now?</em>’ look, so he tried to contain himself and stay focused. “All right, so, Tadfield. I guess we’re both gonna have to get a bit of a wiggle-on.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Tadfield. Airbase.” Aziraphale repeated.</p><p>“I heard that. It was the ‘wiggle-on’.” Crowley said, wrinkling his nose and frowning at him.</p><p>But the angel knew that expression very well. It was the same the demon used when he was perplexed by what he considered Aziraphale’s outdated or weird language. He also liked to tease him for it and the angel didn’t mind at all. He had got used to it and many other things Crowley did or said. He couldn’t imagine to have that kind of relationship with anyone else.</p><p>“Crowley…” Suddenly, Aziraphale realised that it had been too long since he had last talked to him about his true feelings. “I… there’s something else I need to tell you.”</p><p>The demon’s expression became slightly concerned. “Yes, angel?”</p><p>“I… I need you to know that… that I-I want to– I wish we could…” while Aziraphale struggled to find the right words, he also found himself reaching for one of the pockets of his coat, only to remember that he wasn’t in his body or material clothes anymore. In other words, he didn’t have the small, black box and what it contained. And how could he even think to propose without a… a ring?</p><p>He pulled his hand away from under the table, wanting to reach for Crowley’s instead, but when he looked down at it, he saw that his own hand was beginning to fade.</p><p>“Oh.” He needed to find a body. “I don’t think we have much time left.”</p><p>Crowley nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. “Go ahead. I’ll be there.”</p><p>And, suddenly, Aziraphale knew everything was going to be all right. “I know you will.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>As it turned out, sometimes things actually went as planned. More or less.<p>They would’ve gladly avoided the sudden appearance of Satan, but luckily for them (that is to say, for the whole world) the Antichrist, Adam Young, was such a clever and brave boy who managed to face and defeat the Devil himself. Why? Easy. Because he wanted nothing more than to go on spending time with the people he loved and had fun with in the same place where he felt that he belonged to.</p><p>Aziraphale could perfectly understand that.</p><p>Was it all part of the Ineffable Plan? Well, that is, by definition, a question that’s due to remain unanswered.</p><p>There was, however, a much more urgent question they needed to find an answer to. What would Heaven and Hell do now?</p><p>Aziraphale was fairly certain that they weren’t going to ignore everything he and Crowley had done in order to avoid Armageddon. They would come for them sooner or later.</p><p>The angel felt his hand being gently squeezed and he looked down at his and the demon’s interlocked fingers as they were sitting on the bus that was going to take them back to London. He smiled and rubbed his thumb on Crowley’s hand. Now that he had his body back again he could sense his heart race a little bit faster when he imagined what it’d be like to feel a cold, round, metal object on the demon’s ring finger. The same object he had bought eleven years ago and had remained safely in its black box since then. After Adam had brought him back in his corporeal form, Aziraphale had reached for his pocket to make sure the small box was still in there. It wasn’t. A wave of disappointment had washed over him, but he knew he could only blame himself for it. Adam had no way of knowing what he kept in the pockets of his coat and after being discorporated and having his bookshop burned down, Aziraphale had no idea if he’d manage to find that ring.</p><p>“You alright, angel?”</p><p>Aziraphale blinked, going back to the present after getting lost his in thoughts. “Ah. Yes. Yes, I suppose I am.” Only now that he was looking at Crowley’s face he noticed, even behind his glasses, that he had bags under his eyes. He looked really exhausted and yet, he was worried for Aziraphale and wanted to make sure Aziraphale was feeling all right. Crowley had always cared about him more than anyone else. Sometimes, the angel thought that he didn’t deserve him. He had wondered once if the demon would actually be happy to spend the rest of the eternity with him.</p><p>
  <em>Would he say yes? And even if he did, would that be the best choice for him?</em>
</p><p>They had never even discussed marriage before. What if Crowley wasn’t interested in it?</p><p>Aziraphale shook his head. It wasn’t a good idea to let doubt get the best of him and he was tired. He out of the window and, despite the dark, it wasn’t hard to recognise the place.</p><p>“I think this is our stop.”</p><p>“Yep.” The demon confirmed.</p><p>They got up after the bus began to slow down until it stopped and they got off together, still holding hands. They hadn’t talked much during the ride and both of them felt rather comfortable in their silence – which was broken only by the background noises of the city – as they approached Crowley’s flat.</p><p>Aziraphale had had only a few chances to visit the place, since they usually preferred to spend time at the bookshop. Crowley opened the door for him and then went to the cocktail cabinet, where he kept all the good stuff.</p><p>“Make yourself at home.” He said, as he took a random bottle of liquor and two glasses.</p><p>Aziraphale glanced around and couldn’t help but notice the plants, which the demon always took better care of than he liked to admit. They were as beautiful as ever.<br/>
He sat down on the sofa when Crowley approached and offered him a glass that had already been filled. He smiled and murmured a ‘thank you’ before taking a sip. Then another. He finished his drink faster than he’d usually do, furrowing his brow slightly as the alcohol burned in his throat. It was strong. Good. He did need something strong. Crowley seemed to be of the same opinion because he was already filling his glass a second time. Aziraphale licked his lips, as he watched the demon bring his drink closer to his mouth. But then Crowley stopped and put the glass down, before removing his sunglasses.</p><p>“Angel?”</p><p>Aziraphale took a moment to appreciate the sight of those wonderful amber eyes he loved so much. “Yes, dear?”</p><p>“There’s…” the demon began, but then trailed off, shaking his head and tried again, “I just… I remember you wanted to tell me something when you found me at the pub earlier.”</p><p>“Ah.”</p><p>And there it was again. The sensation that twisted Aziraphale’s stomach, meanwhile questions began to fill his mind. <em>Who am I to oblige him to bond with me for the rest of our lives? What if having lost the ring is meant as a sign? We don’t even know if we’re going to be here tomorrow. Is it really worth it at this point?</em></p><p>“No.” He said, trying to bring himself to smile, but he knew he was failing. “I mean, it’s… it’s nothing important. Let’s get some rest now.”</p><p>Crowley looked like he wanted to say something else, but changed his mind again and nodded. “Yeah. We should also think of a plan.”</p><p>They both stood up and headed to the bedroom, which was exactly like Aziraphale remembered. Queen-sized bed with dark red sheets, two night tables next to it and a rather large window with grey curtains.</p><p>The demon took a few steps closer to it and pulled the curtains to close them, even though there was still a small gap between them. Then, he turned to the angel, “Aziraphale… uh, listen, I know you always sleep on the left side of the bed, but… just this time, do you mind sleeping on the right?”</p><p>Aziraphale didn’t expect that request, but felt happy to oblige. It’s not like they had to stick to the same positions they were used to when they slept together. “No, of course. I’m fine with either side.” </p><p>“It’s just– its’s closer to the window and I hate when the sunlight hits my face through it in the morning.” Crowley said, as if trying to justify himself. He rubbed the back of his neck, looking a bit awkward and Aziraphale found it endearing.</p><p>“It’s no trouble for me, dear. In fact, I quite enjoy to feel the sun on my skin when I wake up.”</p><p>“Of course…” Crowley shook his head with a smile as he took his jacket off and sat down on the left side of the bed. “… that’s so… you.”</p><p>Aziraphale had already taken his bowtie off and started to unbutton his waist coat, but he stopped, furrowing his brow as he looked at the demon. “What do you mean?”</p><p>“Well, I mean, you can literally <em>glow</em>. I’d be kinda surprised if light annoyed you the way it annoys me. I mean– I’m not saying I’m annoyed by your light, of course! That’s… that’s different.”</p><p>“Right…” Aziraphale’s eyes were still open, but he wasn’t looking at anything in particular. Something was starting to make its way in his mind. “You could almost say that I’m… immune to it.”</p><p>“Uh, yeah. You can put it like that I guess.”</p><p>“Light doesn’t annoy me because I’m an angel. But, you’re a demon so you’re more comfortable with the dark and that’s why you wanted to switch sides.” In the silence of the room, you could almost hear the gears meshing in the angel’s head.</p><p>“Yeeeaah… but, look, if you don’t want to it’s fine, we can…” </p><p>Then, suddenly, he had something that couldn’t be described better without the help of James Joyce’s words. An epiphany.</p><p>“CROWLEY!” </p><p>The demon almost jumped. “What– what is it? What did I do n–mmf!”</p><p>Driven by his sudden excitement, Aziraphale grabbed Crowley’s face with both hands and kissed him.</p><p>He grinned at him when he pulled away and, a little breathlessly, he said, “You’ve just given me a splendid idea.”</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~</p>
</div>As incredible as it sounded, for the second time in less than a couple of days, their plan had worked. It probably wouldn’t have without the help of a 14th-century-old prophecy, but that was just a detail.<br/>All that mattered was that they had successfully avoided death again, they were finally free and wouldn’t have to worry about Heaven and Hell for a long time.<br/>More importantly, they didn’t need to hide or be careful every time they went to the Ritz together.<p>Aziraphale raised his fork to take the last bite of his dessert and closed his eyes. He didn’t even try to suppress the moan of pure pleasure that escaped from him. The food – and the champagne – tasted infinitely better now.</p><p>After he reopened his eyes and wiped his mouth, he noticed that Crowley was staring at him and wasn’t even hiding it.</p><p>The angel would be lying if he said that look wasn’t affecting him, just like the words they told each other had.</p><p><em>To the world</em> they had said, as they made their toast. Even though it sounded a bit different, at least in Aziraphale’s head.</p><p><em>To us. Because you’re my world</em>.</p><p>That much had been established. So Why did he have a feel that something wasn’t right? Why did he feel like there was still something missing? Maybe Aziraphale should really stop lying to himself, because he perfectly knew what was missing. Looking at Crowley now, he could see it better than ever. This was the life he enjoyed and now he could be free to live it. What was he waiting for?</p><p>“Crowley?”</p><p>“Hm?” The demon said, already giving him his full attention.</p><p>Well, he couldn’t draw back anymore at this point. What was that saying humans came up with? It’s now or never. </p><p>“Do… do you remember that I was trying to tell you something the other day at the pub?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Crowley nodded, thoughtful. “Feels like an eternity ago.”</p><p>“That it does.”</p><p>“Anyway, you said that it wasn’t important.”</p><p>“I know I did, but… I lied.” For some reason, Crowley didn’t look impress at all when Aziraphale gazed at him. He cleared his throat and went on, “The truth is… I didn’t know how to say it, or maybe I just didn’t have the courage. But now…”</p><p>He could see a hint of the demon’s amber eyes behind his sunglasses.</p><p>“Now, I don’t want to hide it anymore.” He said slowly, as he reached for what had been in his pocket for far too long and finally, <em>finally</em> he pulled out the small, black box which had miracously reappeared after the Apocalypse had been averted. Adam had indeed put everything back into place, just as it should be.<br/>
Aziraphale opened it to reveal a ring decorated with tiny black and white diamonds, which were positioned to form two wings, one above the other.</p><p>He took a deep breath and…</p><p>“My dear… will you marry me?”</p><p>Crowley stared at him and looked like he had stopped breathing. “No…”</p><p>Aziraphale felt his heart shatter in thousands of pieces. “No?”</p><p>“NO– I mean, yes, but– I just, I– ngk!”</p><p>The demon started to gestured frantically and then shoved his hands in the pockets of his jacket. Eventually, he seemed to find what he was looking for. “I’ve been meaning to do this for a while and I… I wanted to be the one to ask.”</p><p>Now it was Aziraphale who couldn’t breathe when he saw that Crowley pulled out a small, white, velvet box.</p><p>“Right, so…” Crowley pushed his chair backwards and then he got down on one knee in front of a totally stunned Aziraphale. “Angel, my… my love. Will you be my husband?”</p><p>“Oh. <em>Oh</em>, Crowley…” It took a few moments for Aziraphale to realise that he wasn’t dreaming. He brought a hand to his chest as his heart hammered against it as if it was about to explode with joy. “Of course I will.”</p><p>Crowley gaped, speechless, as if processing that answer was something that went beyond him.</p><p>“My darling, my Crowley…” Aziraphale bent forward and tilted the demon’s chin slightly to be able to kiss him on the lips.</p><p>Crowley relaxed almost immediately against him and sighed softly, melting into the kiss.</p><p>They seemed to forget everything that wasn’t just the two of them, free and happy. But the world was still there and it didn’t ignore what was happening.</p><p>People took their mobiles and began not so subtly to take pictures of those two middle-aged men, who looked so different and yet so similar to each other and oh so in love.</p><p>A young waitress, who was witnessing the whole scene like everyone else in the restaurant, leaned closer to one of her collegues to whisper, “I wish my girlfriend would propose to me like that.”</p><p>The pics were going to become quite famous on social media with the hashtag #marriageproposalattheRitz.</p>
<p>
  <br/>
</p><div class="center">
  <p>~~~ <em>End</em> ~~~</p>
</div>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! <br/>I hope you enjoyed it ;)</p><p>Here’s what I imagined Aziraphale and Crowley’s rings would look like:<br/>https://www.sapphirestudiosdesign.com/product/angel-0-50ct-natural-black-and-white-diamonds-white-gold-angel-wings-ring/</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>